The present disclosure relates generally to fixing of images in image forming devices. More particularly, the present disclosure describes an apparatus, method, and system useful for fixing an image on media using cold pressure fusing techniques.
It is becoming more and more important to build devices with environmentally friendly “Green” enabling technologies. One aspect of green printing is reducing the power consumption in xerographic laser printers. Since a major portion of the power supplied to these printers is consumed by fixing marking materials on media, typically through the use of a thermal fuser, it can be important to consider techniques to lower fixing power requirements, such as thermal energy per print. Improvements in reducing thermal energy used by a fuser have been made through instant-on and low-melt toner designs, but there is a need to continue to decrease power consumed by the fixing device even further.
Fixing by mechanical compression (pressure fixing) offers several advantages over thermal fusing. A printer using a fixing device that does not include a thermal energy source, such as by pressure alone, can provide an energy reduction of more than 50% compared to thermal fusing. Other advantages of pressure fixing devices include no standby power, instant on, robust fuser rolls that last the life of machine, increased fixing device reliability, reduced fuser service costs, fast first copy out time, process speed insensitivity, reusable fixer hardware, reduced emissions, reduced noise, no cooling requirement and no fuser edge-ware issues. However, pressure fixing can result in image fix somewhat less permanent than fusing methods that involve heating the toner image. Some other disadvantages of pressure fixing can include high image gloss, paper damage under high pressure, increased fixing device weight, and fix permanence being substrate type and width dependent.